Tired stretch of Congress Street due for a makeover

Photo / James McCarthy

1006 Congress St. in Portland, a former sea captain's home with an addition that housed a church, is one of a number of properties in the Libbytown neighborhood of Portland purchased for redevelopment.

PORTLAND — Several neglected buildings along Congress Street in Portland are getting some much-needed TLC from a local developer.

The developer, going by the name 1006 Congress Street LLC, bought the 13,500-square-foot mixed-use building located at 1006 Congress St. from Delta Realty LLC for $646,000 in a deal that closed on July 26. Tom Moulton and Sylas Hatch of NAI The Dunham Group brokered the sale, representing both sides of the transaction.

The property is located to the west of Congress Street's more vibrant downtown district, in Libbytown. The area is comprised of residential properties interspersed with smaller commercial properties. The purchased property was advertised as a prime location for a variety of uses with excellent redevelopment potential through the use of the historic tax credit program.

"That was exactly the developer's thought process," said Hatch. "His intent is to transform the building into something high-quality that will improve the area —possibly a medical office space or something similar."

The building at 1006 Congress St., as seen from across the street, showing the large addition that was built in the 1980s to accommodate its most recent occupants, the Deliverance Center Church.

The building has interesting architectural elements. It was originally built in the early 1900s as a two-story ship captain's house, complete with a turreted roof. A large addition was built in the 1980s to accommodate its most recent occupants, the Deliverance Center Church.

The developer is no stranger to the Libbytown neighborhood. Hatch said the developer recently redeveloped 17 Westfield St., around the corner from 1006 Congress St. The Westfield Street property was formerly occupied by Keeley Construction but is now home to Bunker Brewery, Architectural Salvage, American Roots Clothing, and Redhook Woodworking. The developer also purchased 1020 Congress St., which is across Westfield Street from 1006 Congress St. and is currently occupied by Paulin's Tire. There are no immediate plans for this building, said Hatch.

"Up until recently, Libbytown has not received much attention from investors," he said. "That's changing and the neighborhood is transitioning quickly."

1020 Congress and 17 Westfield streets were never actually listed or marketed for sale, which is becoming increasingly common in a tight market, he said.

Hatch and Moulton recently sold another property that never made it to the market, located at 480 Congress St., in the busy downtown area. The property was sold to Ashby Team LLC by The Buzz LLC for $1.275 million on July 21. According to the Maine Memory Network, the building was built in 1924 for stores and offices.

"It was a very clean quick cash offer," said Hatch. "It's just a solid asset in a great location."